MLS12103: Chemical Formulas and Composition Stoichiometry

1. Chemical formulas

Basis: Dalton’s Atomic Theory

Explains the Law of Definite Proportions or Law of Constant Composition: different pure samples of a compound always
contain the same elements in the same proportion by mass; this corresponds to atoms of these elements combined in
fixed numerical ratios.

Chemical formula: shows the chemical composition of a substance; represents the elements present as well as the ratio
in which the atoms of the elements occur

Examples:

Types:
Empirical formula: shows the ratio of atoms in a compound
Molecular formula: shows the actual number of atoms in a compound
Structural formula: shows the actual number and the order in which atoms are connected in a compound

Molecular models: shows the shapes and relative sizes of molecules; shows the bonding sequence and geometrical
arrangements of the atoms in a molecule; i.e., ball-and-stick, space-filling
*Bonding sequence and geometric arrangements of atoms in a molecule are extremely important because they
determine the properties of compounds

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2. Atomic weights
Atomic weights: relative atomic masses based on the atomic mass unit (amu), which is defined as exactly 1/12 of the
mass of an atom of a particular kind of carbon atom (carbon-12)
Examples: atomic weight of hydrogen = 1.00794 amu
atomic weight of sodium = 22.989768 amu

*The term “atomic weight” is widely accepted because of its traditional use, although it is properly a mass rather than a
weight. “Atomic mass” is often used.

3. The mole
Mole: abbreviated mol; the amount of substance that contains as many entities (atoms, molecules, or other particles) as
there are atoms in exactly 0.012kg of pure carbon-12 atoms

1 mole = 6.0221367 x 1023 particles

Avogadro’s number = 6.022 x 1023

The mass of one mole of atoms of a pure element in grams is numerically equal to the atomic weight of that element in
atomic mass units. This is also called the molar mass of the element; its units are grams/mole, also written as g/mol or
g·mol-1.

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Application: mass of one mole of atoms of some common elements

4. Formula weights, molecular weights, and moles

Formula weight (FW) of a substance: the sum of the atomic weights of the elements in the formula, each taken the
number of times the elements occurs; gives the mass of one formula unit in atomic mass units; correctly used for either
ionic or molecular substances

Molecular weight (MW): same as FW but more correctly used in molecular (nonionic) substances

FW/MW is numerically equal to molar mass; they differ in units

Application: for NaOH

IMPORTANT RELATIONSHIPS

5. Percent composition
If the formula of a compound is known, its chemical composition can be expressed as the mass percent of each element
in the compound (percent composition)

Example: for CO2

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6. Derivation of formulas from elemental composition
Application01: Compounds containing sulfur and oxygen are serious air pollutants; they represent the major cause of
acid rain. Analysis of a sample of a pure compound reveals that it contains 50.1% sulfur and 49.9% oxygen by mass.
What is the empirical formula of the compound?

Application02: A 20.882g sample of an ionic compound is found to contain 6.072g of Na, 8.474g of S, and 6.336g of O.
What is its empirical formula?

7. Determination of molecular formulas

Application01: A 0.1014g sample of purified glucose was burned in a C-H combustion train to produce 0.1486g of CO2
and 0.0609g of H20. An elemental analysis showed that glucose contains only carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen.
Determine the masses of C, H, and O in the sample and the percentages of these elements in glucose. Other
experiments show that its molecular weight is approximately 180 amu. Determine the empirical formula and the
molecular formula of glucose.

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IMPORTANT RELATIONSHIPS

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